IRAQ TESTIMONY-WORLD TRIBUNAL

The Economic Colonization of Iraq: Illegal and Immoral

Antonia Juhasz

International Forum on Globalization
Testimony to the World Tribunal on Iraq
New York, NY May 8, 2004

The Bush Administration is using the military invasion and occupation of Iraq to advance a corporate globalization agenda that is illegal under international law, has not been chosen by the Iraqi people and may ultimately prove to be even more devastating than twelve years of economic sanctions, two U.S.-led wars and one occupation. The Administration's ultimate goal is to take the agenda to the entire region.

In direct conflict with its obligations under international law, the Bush Administration is fundamentally altering Iraq's economic laws to U.S. corporate advantage and is not adequately restoring and providing Iraqis with fundamental necessities such as water and electricity. Fortunately, clear alternatives exist to ensure that the U.S. adheres to its obligations and that Iraq's reconstruction is achieved. These policies are provided at the end of this testimony.
The goal of the Bush Administration, as stated in the economic orders already enacted in Iraq is to, "transition [Iraq] from a ... centrally planned economy to a market economy."

This goal is explained even more clearly by BearingPoint, Inc. ‚ the Virginia based corporation that has received the $250 million contract to facilitate this transition. The contract states:
"It should be clearly understood that the efforts undertaken will be designed to establish the basic legal framework for a functioning market economy; taking appropriate advantage of the unique opportunity for rapid progress in this area presented by the current configuration of political circumstances... Reforms are envisioned in the areas of fiscal reform, financial sector reform, trade, legal and regulatory, and privatization."

Transformation of an occupied country's fundamental laws is illegal under international law.

It directly violates the international convention governing the behavior of occupying forces, the Hague regulations of 1907 (the companion to the 1949 Geneva conventions, both ratified by the United States), as well as the U.S. Army's own code of war ‚ as stated in the Army field manual "The Law of Land Warfare."

Article 43 of the Hague Regulations requires that an occupying power "re-establish and insure, as far as possible, public order and safety, while respecting, unless absolutely prevented, the laws in force in the country."

Resolution 1483 of the UN Security Council issued in May 2003, specifically instructs the occupying powers to follow the Hague Regulations and the Geneva Convention in Iraq. Indeed, in a leaked memo written on March 26, 2003, the British attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, warned Tony Blair that "the imposition of major structural economic reforms would not be authorized by international law."

In other words, the occupying power is like a temporary guardian. It is supposed to restore order and protect the population but still apply the laws in place when it arrived. As Naomi Klein has written, "bombing something does not give you the right to sell it," yet this is precisely what the Bush Administration is doing.

Changing Iraq's Laws

In direct conflict with U.S. government obligations under international law, the Bush Administration has begun fundamentally altering the economic laws of Iraq. For example, the provision in Iraq's Constitution outlawing privatization of key state assets has been over-ridden, as has the law barring foreigners ‚ other than citizens of Arab countries ‚ from owning property or investing in Iraqi businesses.

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